Lion Mayes wins Rising Star nod

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IT WOULDN'T be hard for young Brisbane Lion Sam Mayes to get carried away by his decorated junior career.

By the age of 18 he had Under-18 All Australian honours, was an AIS-AFL Academy graduate and had made his SANFL senior debut.

The Lions knew they had a prodigious talent when they selected the South Australian with pick eight in the 2012 NAB AFL Draft, but what quickly became apparent was his burning desire to improve.

As a forward with deft foot-skills and an uncanny knack of finding space, he wants to add a harder edge to his game.

"I need to develop a bigger body so I can push into the midfield and play an inside role while still having the ability play outside and push forward. I think it's pretty important to be versatile," Mayes told AFL.com.au.

"Since I've moved to Brisbane they've given me the opportunity to train through the midfield, so it's been good."

And the 19-year-old seems well on the way to achieving his goal after an impressive performance in Saturday's loss to Fremantle.